CHIOK v. KOURIDAKIS (2008)

In an action to recover damages for personal injuries, the plaintiffs appeal from a judgment of the Supreme Court, Richmond County (Ajello, J.), dated August 2, 2007, which upon the denial of their motion pursuant to CPLR 4401 for judgment as a matter of law made at the close of all evidence, a jury verdict in favor of the defendants and against them on the issue of liability, and the denial of their motion pursuant to CPLR 4404(a) to set aside the verdict, is in favor of the defendants and against them dismissing the complaint.

ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed, with costs.

 “A rear-end collision with a stopped or stopping vehicle creates a prima facie case of negligence with respect to the operator of the moving vehicle and imposes a duty on that operator to rebut the inference of negligence by providing a non-negligent explanation for the collision” (Ahmad v. Grimaldi, 40 A.D.3d 786, 834 N.Y.S.2d 480;  see Delayhaye v. Caledonia Limo & Car Serv., Inc., 49 A.D.3d 588, 856 N.Y.S.2d 142;  Klopchin v. Masri, 45 A.D.3d 737, 846 N.Y.S.2d 311).   However, “[i]f the operator of the moving vehicle rebuts the plaintiffs' prima facie case with a non-negligent excuse, then the operator may not be held liable” (Artis v. Jamaica Buses, 262 A.D.2d 511, 512, 693 N.Y.S.2d 607;  see Simpson v. Eastman, 300 A.D.2d 647, 753 N.Y.S.2d 104).

 Here, the defendant operator offered a nonnegligent explanation for the accident which the jury accepted.   Thus, it cannot be said that there is no valid line of reasoning or permissible inferences which would support the jury verdict in the defendants' favor (see Szczerbiak v. Pilat, 90 N.Y.2d 553, 556, 664 N.Y.S.2d 252, 686 N.E.2d 1346), or that the jury could not have reached its verdict on any fair interpretation of the evidence (see Lolik v. Big V Supermarkets, 86 N.Y.2d 744, 746, 631 N.Y.S.2d 122, 655 N.E.2d 163;  see also Delayhaye v. Caledonia Limo & Car Serv., Inc., 49 A.D.3d 588, 856 N.Y.S.2d 142;  Klopchin v. Masri, 45 A.D.3d 737, 846 N.Y.S.2d 311;  Morrison v. Montzoutsos, 40 A.D.3d 717, 718, 835 N.Y.S.2d 713;  Garrison v. Geyer, 19 A.D.3d 1136, 795 N.Y.S.2d 926;  Drake v. Drakoulis, 304 A.D.2d 522, 756 N.Y.S.2d 881;  Simpson v. Eastman, 300 A.D.2d 647, 753 N.Y.S.2d 104).